Dynamic characterization of flexible slider-crank mechanisms made of laminated composites

This paper presents a finite element beam formulation with application to the dynamic characterization of flexible slider-crank mechanisms made of laminated composites. The laminae are in the plane of motion as opposed to previous works. This configuration is selected to enhance the load capacity of the system. A new formalism is used to derive system dynamic equations. The formalism is based on an implicit algorithm to eliminate generalized dependent coordinates in Lagrange equation. The method eliminates the need for transformation from local coordinates to the global coordinate system. The procedure is implemented in a compact computer program and is used to characterize the dynamics of flexible slider-crank mechanism. Several simulations are presented to quantify the contribution of coriolis terms at various speeds.